Another day, another Rajon Rondo trade rumor. Add this one to the list, folks, as this is the fourth Rondo trade rumor in a week and a half. Man, that’s a lot of trade talks for a player that Danny Ainge claims is not getting traded. Yeah, sure Danny whatever you say… Anyway, here’s the latest rumor courtesy of Marc Spears from the Boston Globe:

Trade Rumor #4

Celtics Receive: PG Mike Conley and SF Rudy Gay

Grizzlies Receive: PG Rajon Rondo and PF Brian Scalabrine

Analysis

Unlike the previous Rondo deals, I personally love this deal. Now it’s worth noting this isn’t a proposed trade or anything along those lines. Instead it’s just another rumor.

Let’s get to the trade details. I’m a huge fan in Rudy Gay and, of late, he has been coming around and developing into a terrific wing player. Adding Gay would allow us to ship Ray Allen out of town while moving Paul Pierce to the SG position where Gay would start. But a trade like this would not bode well for Bill Walker, who many are high on. Conley is most famous for his play with Greg Oden at Ohio State, but Conley has quietly become a solid PG in the NBA. Let’s face it: Memphis isn’t the most talented team in the world, so if you put Conley out there with the likes of Pierce and Kevin Garnett, he could turn into a rising star.

On the flip side, Boston would be losing Rondo. We all know how I feel on this matter. I don’t want him to go, but I can live with it. Conley is a better offensive player than Rondo, but defensively missing Rondo will hurt this Celtics squad. The other piece in the trade, Scalabrine, really doesn’t change a thing. He’s good for a three pointer a game, but getting rid of his cap hit would be of huge benefit to the Celtics as they try to maybe make a run for a top tier free agent after 2010.

This trade holds very little water, but it’s another rumor that has been reported on. I find it funny though, that for a team that isn’t trading Rondo, it’s spending a lot of time looking at every different possibility.

Matthew Marcantonio is the Patriots and college football editor at Sports of Boston. Marcantonio has contributed for two newspapers; the Sentinel & Enterprise (Leominster, Mass) and The Advocate (Baton Rouge, La) and held internships with The Bleacher Report and Sports Illustrated.

4 comments for “Trade Rumor #4: Rondo To Memphis?”

this is probably the best deal I’ve seen for Rondo. Gay is the man. Conley is shaping up to be somebody really, really good, especially on the offensive end. Not only that, but in this trade, Ray isnt involved. This means we can send him out as well, for maybe a decent draft pick, or perhaps even keep him until his contract is up. I know it hurts you, matt, to see Bill Walker lose potential for more court time, but if its between Bill Walker, or Rudy Gay and Mike Conley…….put 2 and 2 together, dude.

This trade is actually an upgrade talent-wise, but don’t underestimate Rondo’s D in the championship run. I’m not sure Conley’s upgrade in offense is needed or strengthens the team for that matter. However, if Rondo is the mess Ainge made him out to be (and you HAVE to deal him), take a deal like this and cut your losses before you’ve undercut his value too much.